Irritated by changes to ANP/GNP certification

Specialties NP

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I am currently enrolled in an adult/geriatric NP program. When I started, one of the things that appealed to me most was this program's assurance that by taking extra clinical hours, I could sit for both Adult NP and Gero NP certification exams. Now, I'm told that extra clinical hours won't be necessary, because by next year (when I graduate), the ANP and GNP exams will be combined instead of separate. So in essence, all ANPs will be GNPs - no distinction.

This irritates me for several reasons. I want to be a GNP, and treat a geriatric population. I initially planned to be GNP certified, with a secondary ANP cert to make myself more broadly marketable. (When I complained to the director of my program that I wouldn't be considered a geriatric specialist with a combined A/GNP, because everyone would have the same certification, she told me I "couldn't be a specialist at the MSN level anyway, and would have to be DNP for that." :mad: But that's another gripe) I will admit, I wanted the prestige of being dual-certified. But I don't think that's a bad thing. (is it?)

I do understand that the increase in geriatric population makes it necessary to expand the gero focus for all midlevel providers, but I think that combining the certs is short-sighted. Essentially doing away with the Geriatric NP accomplishes what, exactly?

I have contacted both the ANCC and AANP and have confirmed these changes, so I know its' not just a regional thing. I wonder if other GNP hopefuls know about this change, and if I'm in the minority, being irritated by the change. I also know that GNP isn't really a popular specialty- is that the reason for the change? I would think that now more than ever, GNPs would be important, not a diluted A/GNP.

Did you know about these changes? How do you feel about them??

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Specializes in ACNP-BC, Adult Critical Care, Cardiology.

This change is part of the APRN Consensus Model which has been endorsed by NCSBN (all the state boards basically), the five national certification boards (ANCC, AANP, PNCB, NCC, AACN), and various other nursing specialty organizations. The ANP and ACNP tracks will be changed to Adult-Gerontology NP and Adult-Gerontolgy Acute Care NP respectively. The age group is clarified as adolescents to older adults for both tracks. ANCC still offers GNP certification but I am assuming they will retire it soon and only open it for recertification. The timeline for enforcement of the consensus model is 2015.

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The information I received from AANP stated that the Gero certification would be offered until 2014 for those who wished to add that certification to an existing ANP, but the combined Adult/Gero exam will be starting in 2012.

The ANCC information was a bit less detailed, but basically carried the same message without a defined timeline.

So for me- I will be taking the A/GNP certification exam, so what would be the point to taking an additional Gero certification? I imagine there are ANP students out there who don't necessarily want to be GNP certified?

I understand the theory behind the consensus and LACE models. But that doesn't mean I agree with it! What makes me curious is: why hasn't there been a lot of coverage regarding this change- both in terms of the programs themselves, and the AANP & ANCC websites? If I had not specifically been asking, I never would have found out about it. Do NP students know about it? And if so... does anyone care? (other than me, I mean)- am I just more irritated about this than I should be?

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Specializes in ACNP-BC, Adult Critical Care, Cardiology.

because the issue has been eclipsed by all the focus on the DNP...but that's just my opinion.

There are some good changes that the consensus model will bring to the overall APRN field. The gero change has obviously affected your plans in a bad way and I agree with you that some forewarning would have been appropriate

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I imagine there are ANP students out there who don't necessarily want to be GNP certified?

Do NP students know about it? And if so... does anyone care? (other than me, I mean)- am I just more irritated about this than I should be?

I became an ANP student specifically because I didn't want to my default role to be geriatric practice. I had only heard these changes as rumor - it is pretty disappointing to hear that this is really going forward. It makes me VERY irritated, to put it nicely.

Essentially doing away with the Geriatric NP accomplishes what, exactly?

Honestly, I think this is just going to drive people into family practice. You will get the same small population of people who genuinely want to be GNP's, who will now be "A/GNP", and new students will scramble to become an FNP so their professional title isn't tainted with "Gero". It has nothing to do with the population you actually work with ... it's about marketability, as you mentioned earlier.

It's such a "nursing" attitude to take, this obsession with re-naming and re-titling things. All of this upheaval over titles and certification seems so unprofessional.

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Specializes in ACNP-BC, Adult Critical Care, Cardiology.

...speaking of titling, the consensus model is recommending that APRN's adopt the following titles across all states:

Name, APRN, CNP

Name, APRN, CRNA

Name, APRN, CNM

Name, APRN, CNS

... this is just one more straw to add to the burden of deciphering the nursing alphabet soup we've created but maybe if we stick to this and quit changing letters, 100 years from now the public will finally know what the letters stand for.

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Specializes in Nephrology, Cardiology, ER, ICU.

And you are going to have to get the states to agree.

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Specializes in ACNP-BC, Adult Critical Care, Cardiology.

I know, let's see if the states buy into that plan. However, one of the endorsers of the model is NCSBN which basically represents all the state boards and the idea was to standardize the LACE concept for all APRN's across all the states similar to RN's.

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Specializes in Adult Nurse Practitioner / Gero NP.

....I have contacted both the ANCC and AANP and have confirmed these changes, so I know its' not just a regional thing. I wonder if other GNP hopefuls know about this change, and if I'm in the minority, being irritated by the change. I also know that GNP isn't really a popular specialty- is that the reason for the change? I would think that now more than ever, GNPs would be important, not a diluted A/GNP.

Did you know about these changes? How do you feel about them??

I am a upcoming student of a AGNP combo program, as a direct-entry MSN student. I know that direct-entry programs are a bit controversial, but I'll charge forward anyway :-) So, apologies if I get terminology mixed up or anything like that. Not new to the healthcare field, but new to nursing!

I initially applied to the FNP program because, although I have no interest in working in obstetrics and/or peds, I didn't want to limit myself because my scope of practice was too restricted. However, my letter of intent clearly delineated my passion for health promotion in adults (specifically with adults who have co-morbid, chronic mental health concerns...and even more specifically, with older adults in this population), and the faculty contacted all the FNP applicants prior to making a decision and let us know that they would be changing their GNP track to an "AGNP" track for the incoming cohort, and if this was appealing, they would be happy to change an application from FNP --> AGNP.

I thought a lot about this, and eventually opted for the AGNP track. I'm very happy that I did. Although I won't begin school until this summer, I have continually come across guidance and feedback that makes me feel I made the right choice. As I want to work with primarily older adults, the scope of practice is broad enough with ANP and GNP certification that I feel I will be able to work in most any setting I find myself interested in. For me, my heart is working with the gero population, but the prospects of being limited to a strict age limit made me too uneasy. So, it was this combination of ANP and GNP that allowed me to feel confident enough to specialize in adults at all and not opt for the generalist, more-diluted (but safest) FNP. And...the majority of our clinical exposure and class content will be focused on the same topics that the previous GNP program focused on.

I can understand the perspective of wanting to maintain the specialized skill set of GNP's, but I never realized that older adults were a favorite population of mine until I worked with them. I feel that a more combined A/GNP perspective makes the gero nursing tent all the bigger, with room for many future gerontology specialists who never knew they wanted to work with older folks.

...speaking of titling, the consensus model is recommending that APRN's adopt the following titles across all states:

Name, APRN, CNP

Name, APRN, CRNA

Name, APRN, CNM

Name, APRN, CNS

... this is just one more straw to add to the burden of deciphering the nursing alphabet soup we've created but maybe if we stick to this and quit changing letters, 100 years from now the public will finally know what the letters stand for.

Moving from one state to another in preparation for school has made me even more aware of the "alphabet soup". I think that a standardized APRN (or similar) title is a good idea. Everyone in America knows what a MD, RN, DO, and PA are -- and many of them have plenty of letters after the primary title too (FAAP, FAAFP, etc). In Virginia, many of the nurse practitioners use "LNP" which always seems to read "LPN" to me at first glance, and Washington state uses "ARNP" which is almost like APRN. I dunno....I have lots more to learn than pharmacology and nursing skills this year! I'm sure my ideas and perspectives about this and many other issues will change quickly once I begin the journey.

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the alphabet soup offered by the credentialing center is confusing to nurses and the public alike 

the GNP was abandoned with no path or opportunity to add adult NP to credential reprehensible, we were left with no options what an insult to the elderly we serve and to those who trained to be GNP

the highest level of NP/RN education is PhD though the DNP is offered as the ultimate goal, it is not

it is disappointing to see what the profession has done to those who commit to a lifetime of service, also the obvious lack of support for older and disabled NPs 

After a lifetime in the profession I am mortified by how GNPs are treated, and even after asking have received no help what so ever to add ANP and renew GNP

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